Here we go guys with chapter seven. This chapter goes right back to Shun and shows what he's doing now in the Sanctuary and how the Saints are getting along with him. He senses something that the Saints have seemed to miss (I wonder what that could be? ;D) and he meets his Uncles for the first time before a meeting to discuss the Othrysians begins.
Thanks to all the crazy people who've stayed around waiting for me to update. Sorry its taken so long, but I don't really feel like I have that much inspiration for any of my stories right now.
Anyway, hope you guys have enjoyed so far and feel free to leave a review to tell me what you think of the story so far.
Chapter Seven: Unnerving Silence
Shun couldn't help but stare at the Sanctuary. It was certainly a beautiful place. The whole place was full of Saints of all sorts of power levels training and becoming stronger, doing everyday tasks and such. The Gold Saints were patrolling the borders or watching over everything from high above, making sure that nothing went wrong. It was an utterly peaceful and happy place. For being the home of the Saints, he hadn't really expected anything else. It was a beautiful and calming place. A smile touched his lips, and as Saori turned back to look at him, she couldn't help but smile too. He just had that kind of face, that could make you happy as well. His smile lit up every room.
Even Ikki, sour though he usually appeared, seemed to pause and look at the boy. He didn't smile in response to Shun's smile but he seemed to not be as angry either. Shiryu smiled when he saw the boy's smile, glad to be able to see anything at all, and Seiya gave him a crooked and goofy smile. Reda on the other hand crossed his arms and gave Shun a glare that clearly said he didn't like him at all. Shun didn't seem to notice however.
"Wow this place is beautiful," Shun breathed.
"You like it?" Saori asked.
"Yeah," Shun replied. "It's amazing. I've never seen anything quite like it."
"Was your home not beautiful?" Saori asked. Shun paused to think. Was it alright to say so...?
"Well," Shun finally replied. "Not in the same way. I mean, every place has its own beauty in it. This place is beautiful because of the land and the life here. My home is beautiful because of the people that live there, and the hidden treasures it has." Then he couldn't help but grow sad. "Though, it hasn't been the same after the Othrysians attacked."
"The Othrysians attacked your home?" Saori gasped. Shun paused. Had he given away too much? Too many hints like that could get him in trouble. He finally nodded.
The Saints and Athena all paused to look at Shun, even Reda and Ikki. They weren't sure what to say. He had been happy a moment ago, but now there was an aging sadness on his face, one that suddenly made him seem much older. He noticed them looking though and they shook their heads as the older version of Shun disappeared into a still sad but slightly embarrassed one. Saori smiled and took one of Shun's hands in her own.
"It'll be alright," she said. "You'll be safe here, and wherever your parents are, I'm sure they'll be fine as well."
"You're right," he said quietly. "I'm sure they're fine. Thank you."
"Come," Saori said with a gentle smile. "You must be exhausted. I think we all are. Will you all accompany me up to my villa?"
The Saints nodded, but Shun got the feeling that he really didn't have a choice in the matter. He smiled sweetly back at her though as she continued to tug him along gently by his wrist. He followed quietly, unsure what else to do. He was surrounded by Saints, who all smiled at him. Through the Sanctuary though he could spot the God Robes of the Norse God Warriors, the shining Gold of the Mariner's Scales, and even the Wings of the Angel army of Zeus.
They had reached the first of the temples of the Gold Saints. The Saint standing at the entrance, the purple haired one from the entrance to the tournament, moved aside as they came through. He nodded both to Saori and to Shun, giving him a gentle smile as he did so. Shun returned it as he let Saori tug him along after her. They made their way one by one through the temples of the Gold Saints, and their guardians let them pass without complaint. However as they reached the twelfth one, Saori stopped and turned to look at its Saint meaningfully.
He was a tall but very beautiful man with long pastel blue hair and blue eyes. He met her gaze and nodded, walking to the back of his temple. Shun knew this was the temple of Pisces, and behind it sat his Demon Rose Garden. It was said to be a mass of poisonous roses that could kill, and the only person immune to the staggering amount of poison was the Pisces Saint himself. Outside a strange wind seemed to pick up suddenly and through the door he saw the rose garden blowing away quietly into the breeze harmlessly.
"Since we have so many guests," Athena told Shun. "I thought it best to remove the rose garden for now. Pisces can replant the entire thing quickly. In fact he could cover the entire Sanctuary with them if he needed to in only a few minutes."
"You're planning on letting them all up here?" Shun asked in surprise. Athena was known for being cautious, even around the other gods.
"Yes," she said. "I can't afford not to. There is far too much at stake. We need to figure out what's going on and what we're going to do. I'd like every army to be represented equally there, which means that Specter is going to have to represent Hades' army as well."
"I see," Shun said quietly. She had no idea how much representation she was giving the Underworld, but they weren't sure who his parents were. Right now he needed to be as hidden as possible.
Saori continued with him in tow straight up towards her temple now, which also acted as her villa and where she could peacefully watch the Sanctuary. The Saints followed the two of them, and Pisces returned to guarding his temple silently as always. Shun glanced back once and found that Reda was still glaring at him distrustfully. He supposed that it was to be expected though. He was good a picking up cosmoses from what he'd heard, and he probably sensed the great darkness coming off of Shun's. He didn't really like the way he was glaring at him but he understood why he was doing so as well. He looked away again quickly.
As they began making their way through the last of the stairs to Athena's villa however Shun suddenly felt the flare of many familiar cosmoses. He froze in his tracks and turned his eyes towards the mountains that sat on one side of the Sanctuary as a border. He was sure that he had felt the cosmos of his mother, his father, and the rest of the Underworld army, or at least most of them. They were already here? He knew why they would be silent, and he doubted they would show themselves. He wasn't even sure if they knew he was here. However he felt better knowing that they were here. The others paused as they saw him looking, and he noticed Reda bristle suddenly and look that way as well.
"Shun?" Seiya asked. Saori paused and turned to look at the mountain high above them. What had the boy sensed.
"It's nothing," Shun finally managed, turning at last to face forward again.
Reda didn't look so convinced that it was nothing, but he knew that he couldn't pinpoint what was going on with so many cosmoses around. It was nearly impossible to tell who was who in all of this mess. They continued on their way until they reached the top of the stairs and went right to Athena's villa. They weren't the first to arrive however.
Inside was a tall young man with shoulder length blue hair in a shorter but similar fashion to Shun's father's and blue eyes. He was wearing a set of golden armor, not unlike the many Scales they had seen below, but they were slightly tinted bronze in places. He had a long white cape and a trident in his hand.
Beside him was a taller young man with white hair that seemed to be almost exactly the same cut as his father's. He had a light sky blue color for his eyes and wore a golden set of armor with white inlays and eight sets of wings on his back. He carried a scepter with wings on it and a lightning bolt inscribed on the front.
Everyone paused at the door, and so Shun's surprise was masked by their similar reactions. Shun couldn't help but be surprised because he knew the instant he looked at them that he was looking at his father's two younger brothers, his uncles Poseidon and Zeus, though both like Athena had taken human forms now. The two looked up at group that was coming in the door, and they both paused as they looked at the Demigod. However, though Poseidon looked away, Zeus held Shun's gaze, his own seemingly highly interested in the boy. Shun quickly looked away, feeling an odd sort of guilt suddenly. No one else seemed to notice their strange interaction.
"Oh," Saori said with a smile. "Father, Uncle. I wasn't expecting to see you up here so soon."
"We need to meet with everyone as soon as possible," Poseidon pointed out.
"I understand," Athena said, a new spark forming in her eyes. "Believe me, I do."
"Not yet," Zeus suddenly said, surprising everyone. "I would like to speak with this Demigod for a while, and Poseidon as well. Dear daughter, if you and your Saints would leave?"
"O-Of course," Athena said, blinking in surprise but ushering her Saints back outside. The door was closed, and finally Zeus stepped forward, looking at Shun, who couldn't help but blink up at him in surprise.
"Zeus," Poseidon said to his brother in surprise. "What is this about? What's wrong?"
"These eyes," Zeus replied, almost to himself. "I've seen them before." He took Shun by the shoulders and turned him suddenly, making him face Poseidon. The young Demigod just blinked in surprise up towards his other uncle, who was now looking at him closely. "Don't you recognize them, brother? I thought I had sensed a familiar cosmos around here, and as soon as I saw this boy, I realized whose it was. I do think I understand why that Specter's been following him around now, and why he has been so secretive about his Immortal Parent."
"You mean that-?" Poseidon gasped, recognition dawning in his eyes.
"He is the son of Hades," Zeus said, nodding a little, much to Shun's surprise. He supposed though that His father's closest brothers would recognize him instantly. "And not one we've ever met. I doubt he's very old at all."
Shun was unsure how to respond to the two gods. He wasn't scared of them by any means. They were his family after all, and they both looked to be surprised, though other various emotions flickered across their faces. He couldn't blame them. Who would have thought that his father, with all of the things he had done through the ages and the age of myths, would have sons again, let alone one like him? He still hadn't expected this kind of response from the two gods, who looked relieved to have figured out who he was.
Poseidon knelt in front of Shun suddenly, laying his hands on the boy's shoulders as Zeus released the boy and looking into his eyes. There seemed to be many emotions flickering through his eyes, but even though Shun knew that they knew who he was now, his kind and gentle gaze hadn't changed. Finally, Poseidon seemed to steel his courage and looked up.
"What is your name?" he asked.
"Shun," the boy replied, watching the god with slightly concerned eyes.
"Do you have any siblings?" the god continued.
"A twin brother named Alone," Shun replied. At this, Zeus chuckled.
"The underworld does seem to be infatuated with twins," he said. "Do you know how to fight, Shun?"
"Yeah," he replied. "Kagaho taught me how. I prefer to heal people though."
At this the two gods couldn't help but pause again. No doubt they were thinking about their older brother and what he had been like before the Holy Wars had begun. Even Shun knew he had been a stern but kind god that had protected the Earth along with all of the other gods, often saving mortals from death himself though he did not fear it. They were probably also thinking about how until recently they'd been convinced their brother was evil and wanted to destroy the world, only to learn from possibly their worst enemy that they had been wrong.
Shun could see how it seemed to torment Poseidon, and he could see tears beginning to glisten in the man's eyes. Of all the people, he most likely felt that he should have known what was going on with his brother, and he shouldn't have forgotten about the Rage. Now his brother had suffered and probably been forced to die and reincarnate because of how stupid he and all the other gods had been. Maybe he didn't know this child, but he was still his brother's. Poseidon took a shaking breath and pulled the small Demigod against his chest, hugging him quietly and tightly as if he would disappear if he didn't. Shun paused but hugged him back, smiling a little sadly at him. He heard Zeus sigh and lay a hand on the top of his head as if fondly.
For a while, none of them moved and nothing happened. Slowly though, Zeus took a step back and Poseidon let the boy go. The man stood, letting Shun stand again to his full height as well. Shun smiled at his uncles, which seemed to take them both aback for a while and remind them forcefully again that their brother was certainly not an evil god. A rogue like god to be sure, but not an evil one. Both managed small and sad smiles back.
"I assume you were separated from your brother?" Zeus asked. Shun nodded.
"When the Underworld was attacked," he replied. "We were both still children then, but we managed to flee here. I haven't seen him since then."
"How old are you?" Poseidon asked in surprise. "And who was your mother?"
"I'm 35," the boy answered. "And I haven't reincarnated yet. My mother was Pandora."
"That would explain why you look so young," Zeus said thoughtfully. "Because you can't really age. It is a little surprising you were born at all though. Living in the Underworld?"
"My powers were hidden too," Shun said, showing them the marks on his arms. "Kagaho thought it best if we kept hidden as much as possible. I can use spells and fight with my cosmos, but I prefer not to."
"You won't have to worry about that," Poseidon vowed. "We'll protect you, at least until your father arrives. We owe him that much at least. I don't doubt that you're a warrior. You're his son after all. But I'm not going to let anything happen to you."
"Nor will I," Zeus likewise promised. "We will keep you safe, as will my daughter no doubt, and we'll look for your brother as well."
"Thank you," Shun said with a big smile. "uncles."
The way Shun said it made the two war like gods hearts melt. They couldn't help it. How on earth could he be possibly so cute? They weren't entirely sure, but they figured that now that they knew who he was they shouldn't be so surprised. Every Demigod had their own personality, just like every god did. They were people after all. And they knew their brother well by now, so they knew he was a good man. They weren't really that surprised by this, but both smiled a little.
"The others will be ready to gather," Zeus said. "We should call them back. Keep your secret for now, Shun. We will keep it as well."
The boy nodded as the two gods turned and swept out of the room towards the Sanctuary to call the armies to gather for their meeting. He found himself reminded of his father suddenly, the same kingly grace that they moved so too did his father. It made him miss his parents all the more. But for the first time, Shun didn't feel so nervous anymore. He was glad his uncles were willing to be there for him.
Gods knew he needed the help.
So there's the end of that chapter. It took way too long to update this story, but unfortunately I haven't had much inspiration for my Saint Seiya stories (or really any other for that matter). Thank all of you for your reviews and continued support, and I hope you continue to enjoy.